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Section 6: Assessing Traveller Needs - Basic Principles

The 'Ethnicity' Issue

6.1 The issue of the ethnic status of Scotland's Travellers has exercised the minds of each of the Advisory Committees. There are many conflicting views depending on the viewpoint of their proponents and little or no clear evidence to allow a view one way or the other.

6.2 Scottish Travellers are not explicitly covered by the Race Relations Act 1976. Despite assertions by the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) that it has recognised Travellers as coming within the definition of an ethnic group in terms of the Race Relations Act 1976, this has not been confirmed by a decision of the courts. Indeed, this legislation is not devolved to the Scottish Parliament but is reserved to the UK government.

6.3 This lack of definition has been claimed to be an example of institutional complacency. However, such claims, regularly made by the voluntary sector and some Travellers have been examined on a number of occasions by the Advisory Committee. Within the Traveller members of the Committee, there is a clear understanding that the confirmation of such status could provide substantial benefits for the community but there is also a fear that it could drive a substantial wedge between the travelling community and the settled community, at a time where we have a wish for Scottish Travellers to be quintessentially Scottish first and Travellers second.

6.4 It has been claimed recently that 'there is still considerable ignorance and confusion about the ethnic status of Gypsy/Travellers amongst local authorities, the police and government departments' - the concept here is one of clutching at a chimera (Conference on 'Moving Targets', University of Dundee and Save the Children, November 1999). At this conference a speaker from the Traveller Law Centre in Cardiff indicated that he felt very clearly that Romany Travellers in England and Scotland were covered by the Race Relations Act, as were Irish Travellers. However, he had some difficulty with the concept that Scottish Travellers were an ethnic minority within Scotland and went on to say that indeed the status was unimportant and could in fact damage the long term chances of what was important - accepting and respecting Travellers as part of the community.

6.5 Throughout the life of the Committee the focus of attention has been on traditional Travellers, formerly known as 'Tinkers'. The term Gypsy was rarely used in the early years, except in the Borders, and it was not until the early 90s that the question of ethnic status arose, particularly with the inception of the Scottish Gypsy Traveller Association (SGTA) in 1993. Today the terms Gypsy and Traveller are often used to mean the same, as well as conjointly, as in 'Gypsy/Traveller'. Confusion as to who is being described or referred to still occurs.

6.6 The European Parliament signalled concern at the social exclusion of a group who lead highly mobile business lives, the Occupational Travellers (Resolution 89/C 153/01). This group, the Fairground, Circus and Bargees who travel internationally as well as extensively within their own states, experience similar problems with accommodation (access to land for stopping in the winter season and when unemployed) in health (ready access to regular immunisation and health screening programmes) and in education (access to a guaranteed place in school while travelling, discontinuity in their learning, lack of specific targeted funds for resources to support learning at a distance and take up of vocational and life-long learning initiatives).

6.7 The term 'Traveller', a European favoured term (Resolution 89/C 153/02), also has contributed to that confusion since many Travellers travel only infrequently and some not at all, yet still think of themselves as, and are accepted by the rest of their community, as Travellers. It is now standard EU and UK convention that the word 'Traveller' should be capitalised in written documents and this similarly applies to the word 'Gypsy'.

6.8 Given these European Resolutions and continuing concern at the very high levels of illiteracy in all Traveller groups and their lack of qualifications for access to job markets, this Committee emphasises that any future action to address Travellers' needs should review the overall situation of the groups with regard to social exclusion and achieving social justice within a democratic society.

6.9 Despite the generally held view of many within the settled community, Travellers are not one homogeneous group with one distinctive life-style and set of cultural values. Membership, through birth and descent, confers the Traveller identity. Self-ascription and recognition from the wider group dictate who is, or is not, a Traveller (Fraser, 1992; Adams, et al 1975). They have no tradition of electing a spokesperson or a single representative body to act on their behalf (Fraser, 1992; Acton, 1997). Traditionally, the extended family unit is recognised as the group to which individuals owe allegiance and for which each takes responsibility. This cultural structure has implications for carrying out an effective assessment of Travellers' needs. Recognition of the diversity in Traveller life-styles must include an attempt to obtain the views of diverse groups within the wider Traveller community e.g. council site residents with limited or no travelling; council site residents with regular travelling; mobile Travellers using farm-land and privately owned sites; mobile Travellers using roadside or other illegal stopping places; Travellers on their own land with settled accommodation or caravan dwelling with or without mobility. There are also Travellers who are housed and non-travelling and those housed but travelling for work.

6.10 There is a relatively new group, within the UK, the 'New Age Traveller', who have made a conscious decision to adopt a mobile life-style. Their mobility and the highly stereotyped perceptions of them have led to them experiencing similar problems in realising their full rights as citizens and access to public services.

6.11 Travellers are recognised as one of the most marginalised groups within Europe with a history of discrimination in access to the range of public services generally enjoyed by the majority of communities. This has serious effects on their life chances and narrows opportunities for exercising choice, realising their full potential and making a recognised contribution to society. Despite the current lack of clarity on the ethnic status of Travellers within Scotland, it is clear that as an identified 'community of interest', the needs of Travellers', in common with those of all other sections of society, must be assessed when local authorities and other organisations come together to plan, provide for and promote the well-being of the communities they serve.

6.12 The Committee, as a body, respects the views of the Traveller members and, accordingly, has not adopted any stance regarding ethnicity but encourages Travellers themselves to debate the issue and come to a conclusion as to what they see the future of their community being.

The Basic Principles

6.13 The Committee, mindful of the lack of publicly available information on Travellers, has identified several key issues which will require to be taken into consideration when assessing and planning for Travellers' specific needs. The eighth report included a number of recommendations emphasising the need to seek equality between Traveller and settled populations in terms of access to accommodation and services and also in clarifying their ethnic minority status (Appendix C - Recommendations 77, 80-81). The needs are outlined below.

6.14 There is a major need for councils and other organisations to accept responsibility for supporting Travellers' right to pursue a mobile life-style related to work opportunities (Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe) and for an understanding and recognition of Traveller cultures by all service providers. Staff development and policies aimed at achieving this should be incorporated into generalised minority ethnic awareness sessions and the development of inter-cultural and anti-discriminatory approaches (Scottish Executive -Response to Stephen Lawrence Inquiry, 1999).

6.15 It will be essential to actively combat and challenge stereotyping of Travellers and all forms of racism against them.

6.16 The Race Equality Advisory Forum (REAF) was established by the Scottish Executive in late 1999. It has been agreed that the Committee's report will be passed to REAF for consideration.

6.17 Travellers must be made to feel that their voice is necessary and valued in the assessment process. In order to do this it will be important to obtain the views of a cross-section of Travellers. The Committee recognises that this has never been easy since Travellers are essentially individualistic. Given their high levels of marginalisation, distrust of authority and low levels of literacy, it is necessary to make effective face-to-face contact. Here the use of skilled community-based workers, used to working with disadvantaged groups, offers an appropriate form of initial contact, while an advocacy role may also be necessary in order to gauge opinions.

6.18 It will also be essential to actively encourage citizenship in mobile Travellers, including the right to vote in local and national elections, despite having no one fixed address. Mobile Travellers need to be informed and helped to realise their right to a postal vote and to facilities for non-readers. Similarly, Travellers should be encouraged to self-identify in the ten-yearly national census. This would help to establish more realistic national figures on Traveller numbers.

6.19 Awareness of the tensions between the needs of the general public and the highly specific needs of Travellers, e.g. in the physical occupation of land. Public pressure to exclude Travellers can result in openly racist expressions or more subtle approaches such as a high level of refusal for planning permission to build on their own land. Both require vigilance in monitoring and ensuring access to re-dress (Stephen Lawrence Inquiry, 1999 and the Scottish Executive Social Inclusion Strategy).

6.20 Positive discrimination measures to ensure equality in access and uptake of all public services are likely to be necessary.

6.21 Building up trust and confidence takes time and skill. It will be important for key personnel in local authorities and other service providers to establish links between Travellers, planners and providers and the general public.

6.22 Cross-cutting and inter-organisation approaches will be required to agree priority areas, facilitate exchange of information and reduce unnecessary duplication of effort, as well as prevent conflict in counter-productive practices being developed.

6.23 The Community Safety Strategy must encompass Travellers in their various settings in line with common practice for general domestic violence and other civil disturbances. The police, social work and similar agencies should deal with inter-Traveller disputes in line with common practice among other groups in the wider population. Similarly, Travellers subjected to intimidation and violence from within their own group require carefully planned support to ensure their confidence in use of reporting procedures and positive outcomes. They should not be left to 'sort it out for themselves'' as this invariably leads to further incidences and increased feelings of marginalisation and helplessness.

6.24 An adequate range of types of accommodation provision suited to Travellers will be essential. Methods for assessing this particular form of need are discussed in section 7 of the report. Similarly, in fields such as health and education Travellers must both be encouraged and facilitated in their access to the full range of provision and these are discussed further in sections 8 and 9 of the report.

6.25 It will not just be sufficient to promote access as indicated above but also to monitor Traveller satisfaction in access to, uptake and enjoyment of the full range of each of these, and also develop with Travellers methods for recording progress towards their social inclusion and equality in Scotland.

6.26 The Scottish Executive's Social Justice strategy provides the impetus to further action and help to set the tone of national responsibility for inclusion; it makes it clear that all service providers must actively plan for progress.

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